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BBC gaffe reveals true colors (yet again)
THE BBC's reputation for fair and balanced reporting was at risk last night after top broadcaster James Naughtie blurted out his pro-Labour sympathies. In a live chat with ex-Treasury chief Ed Balls — weeks before the May 5 election — he asked: "If WE win the election, does Gordon Brown remain Chancellor?" He struggled to recover, saying: "If YOU win the election." The blunder came on Radio 4's flagship Today programme. Mr Naughtie has frequently given Conservatives a rough ride in interviews while apparently giving Labour frontmen an easy time. The veteran anchorman is author of a biography of Gordon Brown and is close to Tony Blair and other Cabinet ministers. But he surprised his own colleagues yesterday by blurting out his true colours on prime time radio. The slip-up is particularly embarrassing after the Beeb found its newsmen had swallowed pro-EU propaganda without finding out the facts about Europe. The Tories are already at war with the Beeb over its allegedly one-sided coverage of the 1980s miners' strike in last week's BBC1 film Faith. And it follows Lord Hutton's bombshell report last year criticising the BBC's Iraq war coverage. Blunders by correspondent Andrew Gilligan on the Today programme were followed by the suicide of MoD scientist Dr David Kelly and the resignation of two BBC chiefs. Tory ex-Cabinet minister Norman Tebbit pounced on Mr Naughtie's comment. He said: "How often a slip of the tongue betrays the true thoughts in the mind of the speaker. We could all see the shape of the cat in the bag, but Mr Naughtie has now let it out for all to see." Broadcaster and ex-Labour MP Brian Walden said: "It's not usual for a broadcaster to betray their true allegiances." Posted by: gromky 2005-03-03 |
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